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Browsing Archive: October, 2011

Whether you support the Occupy Movement in person or in spirit, this survey is for you. This confidential survey is being conducted by the Message Working Group of Occupy Philadelphia. The goal is to accurately portray the diversity of the Occupy Movement and to let your voice be heard!

The tycoon duo, Charles and David Koch, have been behind an underground campaign to swing the balance of U.S. political power to protect the interests of the wealthy. These multi-billionaire energy tycoons have spent over $50 million on campaigns to influence financial regulations in favor of Wall Street speculators, to impede the implementation of a fair tax and health care reforms, as well as to tear down the science of climate change and prevent the enactment of clean energy policies.Bes...Continue reading ...

In the video below, Oakland California Police in riot gear fire flash grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets at a group of 1,000
peaceful demonstrators outside of City Hall on 14th St and Broadway on October 25th. The
demonstrators were protesting the violent police assault on the Occupy
Oakland encampment earlier that day that resulted in several protesters
having bones broken and one protester hospitalized due to injuries from a
police assault. Among them were veterans carrying Veteran...Continue reading ...

According to a new Pew Research/Washington Post
poll, nearly 40 percent of Americans support the Occupy Wall Street movement. In contrast, only 32 percent of Americans support the Tea Party movement. Conversely, while 44 percent oppose the Tea Party movement, just 35 percent oppose the Occupy movement.

Politicians jockeying for the Independent vote in 2012 may want to take note that more Independents support the Occupy Wall Street movement than do not: 43% support the movement and 35% are oppo...Continue reading ...

The Tax Policy Center has released its analysis of Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 plan, and it finds that the only people who would benefit from it are those making more than $200,000 a year.Everyone else, especially the poor, would pay more. And the middle class would now have the highest effective federal tax rate.

Those making $1 million a year or more would get a tax cut of nearly $500,000, a 15% change...Continue reading ...

Robert Reich, Chancellor Professor of Public Policy, University of California at Berkeley; and Author of 13 books, including his most recent best-seller, "Aftershock: The Next Economy and America's Future:, dispels some of the prevalent myths regarding our economy in this brief, easy to understand video. Reich served in the administrations of Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carterand was Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997. Reich has argued that a nation's co...Continue reading ...

Comedian Stephen Colbert had previously created his own "Colbert Super-PAC" to lampoon the recent Citizens United decision, in which the Supreme Court removed restrictions on corporations to spend on behalf of candidates. Still working to make a point about how lax the nation’s campaign finance rules are after the Citizens United, Colbert created a shell corporation at the end of September, appropriately named Anonymous Shell Corporation, to funnel money into his Super PAC. Doing so ensures...Continue reading ...

For reference, The Glass-Steagall Act was established in 1933 by Congress and repealed in 1999. The Glass-Steagall Act (introduced and sponsored by Democrats) was enacted during the Great Depression to avoid a similar crisis in the future. The act prohibited commercial banks from collaborating with full-service
brokerage firms or participating in investment banking activities. It protected bank depositors from the additional ...Continue reading ...

The following video is the second of a four-part investigation of the financial Meltdown. Part 2 examines how an epidemic of fear caused banks to stop lending, triggered protests and led to industrial action. (Part 1, MELTDOWN: The Men Who Crashed the World, is posted in an earlier blog entry on this site.)

Protesters at Occupy Wall Street on October 5th, answer the question:What brought you here today?

Roger Lattanzil, Computer Programmer"I’m here to try and make sure that business and government stay separate. It sickens me that our own leaders, our own government is so bought out that I owe $120,00 for college, everyone around me is laid off, and computer-programming jobs are going to India. You can’t win, they never stop, no matter how hard you try. I want my government back. Business s...Continue reading ...

Rep. Louise Slaughter and other members of Congress are exploring the
failure of Justice Clarence Thomas to disclose that his wife made
millions of dollars from clients whose cases were decided by the Supreme
Court. Slaughter revealed on “Countdown” that she’s exploring
“retroactive recusal” in cases like Citizens United, which would nullify
Thomas’ vote and overturn the ruling.

Below are the key points of the "Contract for the American Dream" created from the ideas of over 125,000 Americans who gathered online and in their communities. Who better to present those ideas than the people whose future depends on them?

Critical Steps to Get Our Economy Back on Track

1. Invest in America's Infrastructure2. Create 21st Century Energy Jobs3. Invest in Public Education4. Offer Medicare for All5. Make Work Pay6. Secure Social Security7. Return to Fairer Tax Rates8. End ...Continue reading ...

There will be a Virtual March on Wall Street beginning this
Wednesday, October 5, to show support for the Occupy Wall Street
movement. The online event is being organized by MoveOn.org. Those
interested can sign upHERE to participate online.

General Assemblies Statement: As we gather together in
solidarity to express a feeling of mass injustice, we must not lose
sight of what brought us together. We write so that all people who feel
wronged by the corporate forces of the world can know that we are your
allies.

As
one people, united, we acknowledge the reality: that the future of the
human race requires the cooperation of its members; that our system must
protect our rights, and upon corruption of that system, it is up to t...Continue reading ...

The weekend of September 30th,
marchers rallied and took to the streets of Boston, Mass., to protest
the banksters. Over 3,000 people carried colorful banners and banged
drums to confront the nation's largest lenders for their role in the
economic crisis. The march and civil disobedience action signals a
growing popular outrage at the big banks, and comes as Bank of America
announces their new policy of charging customers an annual $60 fee for
using their debit cards. The bank has a...Continue reading ...